I am the Program Director at 1410 WING ESPN Radio in Dayton, Ohio...also host of Dayton Sports Scene weekdays at 5p! Find me on Twitter @ESPNMark!
AFC Top 5 Power Rankings As of mid November
by Mark Neal,posted Nov 17 2011 3:28PM
I was wondering where the Cincinnati Bengals fell in among the best teams in the AFC right now. Here are the Top 5, as I see it, and some resume points...
1. Baltimore Ravens (6-3) I know they have two bad losses, Jaksonville and Seattle, but they have beaten the Steelers twice! It is hard to put them below the Black and Gold with that said. Do they have the team to stay here, I dont feel they do, but they are the best the AFC has to offer right now.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-3) They have two very nice wins over top 5 teams in New England and Cincinnati. But the two losses to Baltimore are the natural tiebreaker. The injury to Ben will be big going forward, as will the health of the rest of the team. May be the class of the AFC if they remain healthy.
3. New England Patriots (6-3) The Patriots own the AFC East having beat the Jets twice. The three losses are all to teams that you can live with...Pittsburgh, NY Giants, and Buffalo. High scoring, dynamic offense, but a defense that makes you wonder sometimes. That will end up being the down fall of the three-time Super Bowl Champions.
4. Cincinnati Bengals (6-3) Only one win of note, over a decent Buffalo team by 3 at home early in teh season. Losses to San Francisco and Pittsburgh, you can live with...and the Denver loss was early on too. The fast rising Bengals have 2 more wins than 2010 already. This isnt their year, but they are getting better each week. Youth and a lack of a running game will mark the end eventually for the Bengals.
5. Houston Texans (7-3) A very nice win over Pittsburgh highlights the schedule to this point. The three losses are to Oakland, Baltimore, and New Orleans...all losses you can accept if you are Houston. The team would be ranked higher except for the loss of Quarterback Matt Schaub means for 1st Round bust Matt Leinart takes over under Center. This team has won with All-Pros Mario Williams and Andre Johnson being injured, but this injury might cut too deep.
You rightfully listed no AFC West teams in the top 5, but one of them has to win the division. Could it end up being a situation like the Seahawks last year?
